Professionals who want to relocate abroad and pursue career opportunities have ranked Hong Kong and mainland China among the top 15 countries that are their preferred destinations, a recent global survey showed.

Hong Kong ranked 11^th while mainland China closely followed at the 12^th spot in the Global Professionals on the Move report released by recruitment firm Hydrogen Group. The report, which was based on the survey, was released on 2 June.

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In Asia, only Hong Kong, mainland China and Singapore have made it to the top 15 list that was dominated this year by the United States, United Kingdom and Australia.

Completing the 15 most preferred countries for professionals who want to move and work overseas were Switzerland, Canada, Germany, Singapore, United Arab Emirates, France, Spain, Norway, Belgium and the Netherlands.

The survey, which was conducted in November of last year, involved 2,444 professionals from 99 countries around the world, with those from United Kingdom taking up 21 percent of the responses, Hydrogen Group said in a statement.

Of the factors considered by professionals in choosing their destination countries, three stood out - lifestyle, prospects and culture, the survey showed.

Countries with lifestyle that suit the lifestyle of the professional and those that offer better career prospects ranked highest in the survey, the recruitment firm said.

The 5^th Global Professionals on the Move report also noted a segment of respondents who claimed they returned home from an international work stint. These respondents were categorized as "return homers" and 71 percent of them were between the age of 30 and 60.

The report also noted that about 95 percent of the "return homers" expressed interest to work overseas again, with most of them willing to find employment in the emerging markets, including China, India, Brazil, Russia and South Africa, were there clearly are shortages of talents.

TagsWork Abroad, Overseas Jobs, Top Countries for Professionals, Top Overseas Jobs Countries